The Serpent's Shadow is the second book is Mercedes Lackey's Elemental Masters series, and focuses on Maya Witherspoon, the daughter of an English father and Indian mother who must flee her beloved India for London when both her parents are killed by a mysterious and magical enemy.

The Plot

Unlike The Fire Rose, which clearly borrowed from "Beauty and the Beast", the fairy tale elements of The Serpent's Shadow nonexistent until the very end, when they are introduced with ham-handed obviousness. Otherwise, the plot follows a fairly typical fantasy-romance plot at a leisurely pace and without any real creativity. Maya's profusion of exotic pets lends the story a childish air, as though at any moment she might add a pink unicorn to her menagerie. The caricature of of Hinduism, particularly Kali, is ripped straight from Indiana Jones, and I found it offensive, even in a fantasy novel.

The Characters

Aside from the two main characters, Maya Witherspoon and Peter Scott, the characters are flat and cliched, with the notable exception of Lord Peter Almsley (more on him later). Maya borders on perfect, and the male villain of Parkening is almost identical to DuMond in The Fire Rose, right down to the cruel stupidity, misogynist views, and desire to rape the protagonist. The female villain is equally two-dimensional and almost equally stupid, leaving Scott as the best character--except, of course, for Lord Peter.

Lord Peter Almsley is clearly Lord Peter Wimsey from Dorothy L. Sayers' mystery novels, with the serial numbers just barely filed off. I found him to be the most enjoyable character in the book, though that could just be because I am a great fan of Sayers' work.

The Prose

The Serpent's Shadow is not all bad. Lackey's prose, though not refined, is of great quality, and although her characters may not be especially well-conceived, she gives them strong voices that carry the story along. Her writing is the book's greatest strength, and what makes the book, if not especially *good*, at least worth reading.